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This thread is for discussion of section 3, "James."

Again I felt I would have got more from the section if I had read any James. I felt this section was a more conventional non fiction narrative and it didnt focus on a gimmick such as the trial of Gatsby or the book club of the first part.

I did feel I actually got a better sense of life in Tehran than in the previous parts and although I didnt gel with the narrator I did feel I learned something which I had not really felt in the previous sections other than stuff about Lolita I would have preferred to get from well, reading Lolita.

Writing is ok but nothing is memorable in a good way.

In this section, Iran's war with Iraq begins, coinciding with what Nafisi refers to as the regime's continued war with it's "internal enemies" and the ending of her position at the university. Feel free to respond to any of the questions below or to anything else you read in the section entitled "James."

Why do you think Nafisi refers to herself several times in this section as "irrelevant?" How does she deal with those feelings? Do you agree with her decision to leave the university? What do you think of her discussion of "courage" as a theme in the literary work of Henry James? Do you agree with the comment above that having read James would help one to get more from this section? Why or why not? Are you more or less inclined to read some of the literature discussed in the book? Any thoughts are welcome!